Producing enough electricity to power 42 2,800 square-foot homes, ISS solar arrays are vital to the orbiting lab's operations. A recent engineering analysis reports the solar wings are degrading at a faster rate than originally planned—between 1 and 2 percent per year.

Astronaut Karen Nyberg launched to the International Space Station on May 28 on a Soyuz spacecraft alongside Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano and Russian cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin. She is a flight engineer with the space station's Expedition 36-37 crew and will return to Earth on Nov. 10. In addition to her amazing space photos, Nyberg has shared some snippets about what it is like to live in weightlessness, including the challenging task of washing her hair in space.